The invention relates to a positioning device for the mating of two components having a center axis at the corresponding positioning point, wherein the axes run coaxially when the components are matched. For example, one component could be a machine table and the other an interchangeable pallet or one component could be a mounting base and the other a workpiece to be mounted on the mounting base, etc.
Often, only very small deviations of the coaxial position of the two components can be tolerated, for example only an axial offset of a few microns can be accepted. Hence, the positioning device used must operate accurately and reproducibly.
An extremely accurate positioning device is described and represented in German Patent Specification 2,537,146. This publication discloses a positioning arrangement for use in assembling two components. Depending on the overall size or the material mass of the components to be positioned, the positioning elements and recesses used will be dimensioned so that the contact pressure occurring upon deformation remains within the allowable limit for the material used. However, with increasing size of the contact zones, the tensional force to be applied for the second mating phase also increases, which leads to unacceptable values for many applications.